Method of making slide fasteners



April 11, 1950 H. ,1. MURPHY 2,504,079

mon oF mmc SLIDE FAsTENERs Original Filed Feb. 26, 1945 2 Shaets-Sheet 1WMM.

Patented Apr. 11, 1950 METHOD F MAKING SLIDE FAs'rENEBs Howard J.Murphy, Lynnfield, Mass., assignor to United-Carr Fastener Corporation,Cambridge, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Original applicationFebruary 26, i945, Serial No.

579,746. Divided and this application September 18, `1946, Serial No.897,728

4 Claims. (CL 139-384) l The present invention relates to slidefasteners of the type comprising a pair of interlocking coils capable ofbeing interlocked and disengaged by Vthe action of a slider movablelongitudinally thereon, and aims generally to provide improved means forsecuring the slider coils to their respective attaching tapes orstringers.

Slide fasteners of the interlocking coil type, in general, comprise apair of co-mating, oppositely wound, open helical coils of metal or anyof a 2 wide variety of organic plastic materials, each coil beingattached to a tape or Stringer. Each coil should be so securely attachedto its Stringer that the lengthwise spacing between successive turns isslightly less than the major dimension of the stock of the coil-in orderthat the intermediate portions of each coil may be squeezed betweencorresponding portions of the other coil. It is also important from thestandpoint of ease in operation of the slider that each coil be securelyattached along an edge of its stringer so as to prevent twisting of thecoil on the stringer, and so as to maintain the axis of the coil inproper alignment with the plane of the Stringer.

Furthermore, in slide fasteners of the interlocking coil type there isdanger of disengaging the slider from the coil. This is particularlytrue when the slider is operated quickly to close the coils and one ofthe coils happens to be bent angularly, presenting a spacing betweencertain convolutions of a coil in substantial alignment with themarginal side flanges of the slider.

The present invention aims to improve generally the construction ofslide fasteners of the interlocking coil type so as to overcome theabovestated disadvantages.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of animproved construction of coil type slide fastener wherein the slider isprevented from being disengaged from the coil.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improvedconstruction of Stringer tape and coil wherein the tape is woven to andsecurely connected to the coil.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an improvedconstruction of Stringer tape and coil in which the coil is attached tothe tape by a weft thread of the tape looped a plurality of times abouteach convolution of the coil to properly secure the coil to the tape.

Another object of the invention is to improve the construction of tapeand associated coil as to produce a neater, less conspicuous and hencemore attractive slide fastener.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel type andconstruction of coil-carry'- ing Stringer tapes.

A still further object of the invention resides in the improvement ofthe method of making the Stringer tapes as well as for attaching thetapes to the coils.

The above and other objects of the invention will be apparent to thosepersons skilled in the art from a consideration of the accompanyingdrawings and annexed specication illustrating and describing onepreferred construction embodying the invention as well as a preferredmethod of manufacture thereof.

This application is a division of my co-pending aplication Serial No.579,746, filed February 26, 1 4

In the drawings: Y

Fig. l is a fragmental front elevation of a portion of a coil type slidefastener according to one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail front elevation of a portion of a pair ofinterlocking coils and attached stringer tapes according to a preferredform of the invention;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of the slide fastenershown in Fig. 1, as taken on the line 3-3 thereof;

Fig. 4 is a greatly enlarged horizontal sectional view takentransversely through the Stringer tape and illustrating the manner ofattaching the Stringer tape to a coil; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are schematic views illustrating the method of weaving thestringer tape tr he coil according to one form of the invention.

Slide fasteners of the type in which the fastener elements comprise apair of co-mating interlocking coils are well known. The coils areusually formed of continuous lengths of a ribbon or filament of suitablematerial, such as metal or plastic. These filaments or ribbons areusually of noncircular cross section and are helically wound whiletwisting to provide a coil of desired length, the convolutions of whichare spaced apart, a distance less than the thickness of the stock.

As stated, the coils may be made of metal or oi' any of a wide varietyof organic plastic materials, for example solid polymers of styrene.vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride or methyl methacrylate et cetera orresinous copolymers of such compounds with other unsaturated organiccompounds. Such organic plastics are preferred since they may readily becolored and the filaments are sufficiently stiff and elastic to retaintheir shape after being formed, but are sufficiently flexible so thatthey may be easily bent without breaking.

Referring to the drawings, the fastener of the present inventioncomprises a pair of stringer tapes I-2, each having attached thereto oneof a pair of co-mating interlocking fastener coils 3-4 of suitableconstruction. The coils are provided with a slider 5 which may be ofconventional form provided with plates or sides 6, each having marginalside flanges I and connected near their upper ends by a neck or edge lwhich cooperates with the marginal side flanges to form a substantiallyY-shaped coil-receiving channel. The inner free edges 9 of the marginalside flanges 1 are disposed on opposite sides of the stringer tapes Iand 2 and are spaced from the tapes so as not to unduly wear the tapesas the slider is moved longitudinally back and forth thereon.

It has heretofore been proposed, as a means of preventing accidentaldisengagement of the slider from one or both of the coils, to providethe tape with large diameter continuous beads on one or both sides ofthe tape. This construction is satisfactory from the standpoint ofproviding a continuous guide for the slider, but it increases the widthof the fastening and the slider to the point where the fastening is lessattractive in appearance.

According to my invention, the tape is of woven construction embodying aweb portion I0 and one or more flange or wing portions II and I2 alongone edge of the web and to which the successive convolutions of the coilare attached. The web and flanges of the stringer tape may be ofsubstantially uniform thickness and the flanges may be of such width asto provide a retaining guide for the slider which may be of the usualminimum width. Additionally, the use of relatively wide flanges on thestringer tape provides a cover for the side edges of the coils so thatonly an intermediate part of the coil is exposed to view when thefastener is closed, thus enhancing the appearance of the fastening.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention each of the stringertapes I and 2 comprises a web Il and edge wings or flanges II and I2formed of woven fabric material and including warp threads and a weftthread. The warp threads conveniently are of uniform size though this isnot essential to the invention and the flange warp threads may be ofdifferent size or diameter from the web warp threads if desired. The webIl with the edge wings or anges I I-I2 form a stringer tape of T-shapedcross section which is preferable though a tape L-shaped in crosssection may be employed where a slider guide on only `one side of thetape is desired or deemed necessary.

The fastener coils 3-4 may be of any suitable shape and construction andas herein illustrated they comprise helical circular windings of afilament non-circular in cross section, the filament being twisted 180degrees in each winding or convolution. The coils l-I are co-mating andmay be interlocked together by the movement of the slider as will beunderstood. Each coil 3 and I is connected to an edge of a stringer tapsI or 2 and preferably to the anges or wings II-IZ. The particularconstruction of the stringer tapes and of the manner in which they arewoven to the coils will be best understood from Figs. 5 and 6, depictingone method of making the tapes.

Referring to Figs. 5 and 6, the warp threads are illustrated in parallelgroups of web warp threads and wing or flange warp threads, it beingunderstood that these warp threads are appropriately separated by theloom heddle to permit the e of the shuttle. For convenience the endmostthreads of the group of web warp threads are designated Ih-IO, theendmost threads of the group forming Vthe wing II, as IIL-II, and theendmost threads of the group forming the wing I2, as IZL-IZ. It willalso be understood that a preformed coil 3 or 4 is fed to the loomadjacent the warp threads and in the path of the shuttle.

In the particular stringer tape illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 there areeighteen (18)` warp threads in the web I0 within the group between Il'land Ilx and eight (8) warp threads in each of the wings or anges II--I2,within the group designated between II'I-IIx and IIe-I2", and for aparticular weave selected there are sixteen (16) picks of the shuttlefor each coil convolution of the fastener coil. It is to be understood,however, that the above is not critical and is merely illustrative, asobviously the number of warp threads as well as the number of picks andhence the number of weft threads per convolution of the coil may bevaried considerably. In Figs. 5 and 6 the weft thread of the stringertape is illustrated as a single line and the designating arrows thereonindicate the course and pick number of the shuttle. The cycle of weavingfor any single convolution of the coil is as follows:

At the start of the cycle the shuttle moves from right to left,alternately between the warp threads of the flange or wing I2 betweenthe Warp thread I2* and the next adjacent thread ofA the wing I2 asindicated bythe arrow designated A (Fig. 5). The weft thread is carriedby the shuttle over and around the endmost warp thread I2l of the wingI2 and the shuttle then makes the second pick, indicated by the arrow B(Fig. 5). The second pick B is an idle pick, i. e. the wing or flange isnot woven, and the shuttle passes under the coil 3, which momentarilymay be raised above the path of the shuttle. The coil is then lowered,permitting the shuttle to pass over the coil on its third pick,indicated by the arrow C. This third pick is also an idle pick, thepurpose of picks B and C being to loop the weft thread around the coilas at I5 and draw the outermost warp thread I2x of the wing tightlyagainst the coil, as shown in Fig. 4. The fourth pick D is a weavingpick alternating between warp threads of the wing I2, the shuttlepassing. at the end of this pick, between adjoining warp threads III* ofthe web III and I2*1l of the wing I2 and under the coil which again hasbeen temporarily raised. On the fifth pick, designated E, the shuttlemoves over the coil and makes a weaving pick around the warp thread II*and alternately between the warp threads of the wing I I, thus bindingthe coil to the web Il by loop II.

The sixth pick, designated F, is an idle pick t above the warp threadsof wing II and under lll the coil which again has been momentarlalyraised. The seventh pick, designated G, to the left, loops the coil asat I1 and is an idle pick to draw the end warp thread IIx of -wing IItightly against the coil 3. The eighth pick designated H, tn the right,is a weaving pick, the shuttle passing alternately between the warpthreads of wings II.

The above described manner of weaving the stringer tapes and ofattaching them to the coils materially improves the construction of thefastener, as the multiple point attachment of the stringer to eachconvolution of the coil materially strengthens the fastener structureand holds the coil in proper alignment with the web of the stringer, asillustrated in Fig. 4.

After the weft threads have been attached to a coil convolution, asabove described, it is necessary to weave a certain amount of web andwings preparatory to binding or looping the next adjacent coilconvolution. The number of picks of the shuttle will, of course, bedetermined by the texture of the woven stringer tape, the pitch of thecoil and the spacing to be allowed between each coil convolution.Preferably the coils are attached to the stringer such that the spacingbetween coil convolutions is less than the major cross sectionaldimension of the coil stock or filament. It is obviously desirable thatthe coil convolutions be uniformly spaced and accordingly this spacingis uniformly regulated by a predetermined amount of weaving or number ofpicks, prior to the next cycle of picks for the succeeding coilconvolution.

In the illustrated example I have provided eight weaving picks of theshuttle between the weaving pick H of the wing Il, following the lastlooping i1 of a coil and the rst pick for the cycle of the nextsucceeding coil convolution. These are illustrated by picks designatedI, J (Fig. 5) and picks K, L, M, N, O and P (Fig. 6).

This may be effected by Weaving back and forth across the web picks Iand J (Fig. 5), then weaving back and forth across each of the two wingspicks K, L, M and N (Fig. 6), and then back and forth across the webpicks O and P (Fig. 6). During this weaving the coil need not be raisedor lowered as the weft thread is not looped around the coil. It will beapparent to those skilled in the art that the numbers of weaving picks Ito P will vary depending upon the size of the coil and the size of theweft threads, as are necessary to uniformly space the coil convolutionslengthwise of the tapes I and 2 a distance slightly less than themaximum cross sectional dimension of the coil filament.

As is illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, the provision of stringers having aweb and at least one lateral wing along an edge thereof, provided acontinuous guide along the coil for the slider, whose marginal sideflanges are outwardly of and enclose the guides. The combined thicknessof the stringer web l0 and width of the wing H or I2 should be greaterthan the spacing between free edges 8 of opposed flanges 1 on oppositesides of the web. These continuous flanges or wings Il and l2 preventthe slider 5 from becoming accidentally disengaged from the coil as itis impossible for the marginal side anges 1 to be passed through thespacing between any two adjacent coil convolutions.

A further advantage of the construction is that the stringer wings orflanges are secured at their edges to the coil and cover the edgeportions of the coils, exposing to view in front elevation a minimumamount of fastener coil substantially less than the diameter of thecoll, thus enhancing the appearance of the fastener.

It is to be understood that the invention is not restricted to theparticular construction and steps of the method shown and described, asthe scope of the invention is best stated in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of making a coil attached stringer tape for slidefasteners in which the n successive convolutions of the coil are wovento the tape in uniform spaced relationship, which method presenting apreformed fastener coil adjacent to the warp threads designed to form atape, selectively interweaving a weft thread with said warp threads andperiodically looping the weft thread around a convolution of said coilinspaced relation thereon, thereafter interweaving the weft thread withthe warp threads independently of the coil through a predetermineddistance, and again selectively interweaving the weft thread with thewarp threads and periodically looping the weft thread around asucceeding coi1 convolution to uniformly space said coil convolutionsand secure them to the tape as it is woven.

2. 'I'he method of making a coil attached Stringer tape for slidefasteners which tape has a web portion and a laterally extending wingportion along one edge of the web portion which comprises presenting apreformed fastener coil adjacent to a plurality of Warp threads designedto form the web and wing portions, selectively interweaving the warpthreads of the web and wing portions with a weft thread, and looping theweft thread around each convolution of the coil at opposite ends of thewing portion to securely attach the coil convolutions to the tape as itis woven.

3. The method of making a coil attached Stringer tape having a webportion and laterally extending wing portions and in which thesuccessive convolutions of the coil are woven to the tape in uniformspaced relation which comprises presenting a preformed fastener coiladjacent the warp threads designed to form the web and wing portions,selectively interweaving the warp threads of the web and wings with aweft thread, and periodically looping the weft thread around eachconvolution of the coil at a plurality of spaced points along thecircumference thereof from the end warp threads of the wings to securelyattach the coil convolutions to the tape as it is woven.

4. The method of making a coil attached Stringer tape having a webportion and laterally extending wing portions and in which thesuccessive convolutions of the coil are woven tothe tape in uniformspaced relation which comprises presenting a preformed fastener coiladjacent the warp threads designed to form the web and wing portions,interweaving a weft thread with the Warp threads of a wing in onedirection, looping the weft thread around a convolution of the coil,interweaving the weft thread with the warp threads of the wing in theopposite direction, again looping the weft thread around a convolutionof the coil, interweaving the weft thread with the warp threads of theother wing in one direction, again looping the weft thread around aconvolution of the coil, and then interweaving the weft thread with thewarp threads of the other wing in the opposite direction andsuccessively with the warp threads of the web.

HOWARD J. MURPHY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ille ofthis :patenti UNrran STATES PATENTS

